So Sad...Goodbye Metropolitan Home

Yes, another one bites the dust. So sad that another shelter/home decor magazine has shuttered. For me, I am obsessed with home decor magazines, as I am in marketing for three home decor brands. There is still nothing like a glossy pub to capture your attention and really showcase design of any kind. We will miss you Met Home.

Be sure to snatch up the December issue as it will be the last. It will most likely be just like the coveted last issues of Domino and Cottage Living (at least for me anyway). And yes, when I moved, my last issues/archives of issues moved with me. Even though my husband bawked at the idea...I know how valuable these are.

Back in Town...For the Weekend

So, it has been a crazy last few weeks. In my last post, I was on my way to Michigan for a football game and then I didn't recap. Well, here it is. We had a blast. I would show pictures, but I'm not sure my friends would be pleased to see their pictures on my blog with me asking. We arrived on Friday night and stayed with the hubby's parentals. It was nice to see them as I haven't since the wedding. We got a rocky nights sleep to say the least. The hubs still has the bed he had in high school - it's still in his old room. It's a full size bed and a little small for the two of us to say the least. It's also a little lumpy. So long story short, I tossed and turned all night. No worries though because Saturday morning came and all was right. It was rainy and a little cold when we headed out for East Lansing which is about an hour and a half from his parents. We set up at about 1pm for our tailgate - keep in mind this was a 7pm game. We had a great time. Drinks, food, fun. We had bloody mary's and hot chocolate with Bailey's. We know how to tailgate right. The game was a good one until we lost in the last two seconds of the game. It could have been worse, at least the rain stopped an hour before the game. All in all, I think it was a great first Michigan State football game for me. Maybe a new yearly tradition for the hubs and I.

When I got back, I had Monday to get ready for another trip. It was off to Dallas this time for a video shoot for web videos. That went well and I got back on Thursday night. Then it was off to Atlanta this past Tuesday for a marketing conference at our corporate office. I got back last night. Like I said, it's been a busy few weeks.

As for the weekend....tonight it's dinner and bowling with friends. Can't wait. I'm so excited. I love bowling and haven't been in awhile. Tomorrow...who knows. Maybe a walk, a little shopping and some thank you note writing. Yes, I admit, I'm one of those brides that waits six months to get the thank you's out. Shameful, I know. But at least I'm writing them.

I still have some wedding recapping to do, so maybe I can do that as well this weekend. Then it's off to NC on Monday.

I'll check in soon. Hope ya'll have had a good few weeks.

Medi/Mexi

Tonight I made a really good meal for me and the hubby. It was a cross between Mediterranean and Mexican or at least that's the way it seems to me. I haven't ever tried a combination like this before so I'm deeming it medi/mexi since it had both green olives (Mediterranean) and chipotle in adobo sauce (Mexican). I really liked it and we'll be having it again. Um, yum...can you say caramelized onions and garlic. It was a good recipe for chicken since it's really not my favorite meat - it tends to be too thick and too dry sometimes...and maybe a little chewy. But this was yummy and too good not to pass along. One caveat to though, it is a little spicy, so be careful with the peppers.

Here's the recipe from Kraft (my revisions are in bold)
Chicken with Chipotle Cream Sauce
What You Need!
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter - I used 1/4 stick so it reduced the calories and fat
4 bone-in chicken breast halves (2 lb.) - I used boneless, skinless thin sliced chicken, about six pieces
2 medium onions, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
6 large cloves garlic, minced - I used about eight
1 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream - Use light sour cream-it taste the same
1/4 cup canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (4 to 6 peppers)
1/2 cup small stuffed green olives
3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley - I skipped this as I don't really like parsley
Make It!
MELT butter in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 5 min. on each side or until golden brown on both sides.
ADD onions and garlic; cook 5 min. or until tender, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to medium; cover. Cook an additional 20 min. or until chicken is cooked through (180°F). Remove chicken to platter; cover to keep warm.
STIR sour cream, chipotle peppers and olives into skillet. Cook, uncovered, 10 min. or until heated through, stirring occasionally. Pour sauce over chicken; sprinkle with the parsley.

Rainy With a Chance of Football

You heard that right. Rainy weekend, tailgating and football. The hubby and I are heading to his Alma mater....Michigan State. It's supposed to be in the mid 40's, which is pretty cold by this southern girl's standards. Oh well; at least I got a new North Face out of it. I'm actually really looking forward to it. I've never been to Michigan State and it is a much bigger school than UNCG -where we didn't even have a football team, unless you're using the European definition of football.

Tailgating - yay bloody mary's and hot chocolate with Baily's - good food - great friends - corn hole = one happy girl. This should be fun...except for the rain. Cold, no problem. Wet and cold could equal on unhappy girl. Oh well, you take it as it comes. Should be a great time.

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Is Anyone Still Reading?

OK, so bad blogger is not the term for what I am. I knew when I started this blog, there would come a time when I would go on hiatus and not write anything for quite a while. I just didn't know it would be six months. Life has been absolutely crazy since April. In that time, I have gotten married, sold my house, moved to TN and learned to live with my husband. Oh, and might I add that I've moved twice so far - once to my husband's apartment in TN and then to our new apartment in TN.

I am now working from my home office (when I don't have to travel back to NC) with my same company. After returning from our honeymoon, the hubs and I decided that the best thing for both of us would be for me to move to TN - with or without a job. So, in June after the papers were signed and all complete with the sale of my house, I approached my boss to see if he would be willing to let me move to TN and work from home. It took him a while to decide...so long in fact, that during the time he was "evaluating" the situation, our parent corp. announced the office would be relocating to Atlanta, we had a new president and three new VP's - including my boss - which was one of the VP's that got replaced. So, the process began again. Luckily, my new VP didn't take so long in deciding and gave me the go ahead within in a week. So, at the end of July, this NC girl became a TN resident...but only for a short while. When offer letters came out at the end of August, guess who got one. That's right...this chick right here. Long story short, the opportunity is too good to pass up. Although I said I would never move there, we are going to pack up yet again and move. If you're keeping count, that three times in one year. So...Atlanta here we come. There have been some that say we will move again since we are a young couple and just got married. We say....if that happens....we're moving to the coast.

So friends, if anyone is still reading (and I hope you are) I plan to post more often. I have a lot to say and a wedding to recap. Below is a sneak peek at the wedding. I'll post more in the next few weeks.

xoxoxo for now.

Cute Shoes

Has anyone been trolling Piperlime.com lately? They have some really cute shoes that I haven't seen on other sites. I found these tres preppy Moschino Cheap & Chic Sea sandals. These would look so cute with a black sun dress or white shorts and a nautical red/white striped shirt.

I also found these Mystique 1641 sandals. These were a Rachel Zoe pick...rightfully so. How fabulous would these look with a white sun dress and gold accessories. Can you tell I'm ready for our honeymoon in Puerto Rico?

Getting Crafty

So as the wedding quickly approaches I am weeding out the ideas that will be making their final appearance at the kick-off party and the wedding.

For our kick-off party on Friday night (this is our rehearsal dinner, but with like 80 people) I want the vibe to be laid back. We're serving NC BBQ (with both sauces), sweet tea and local beer. We'll have corn hole boards set up and games for kids - including big kids - checkers and cards. Our color theme for this night will be green and white. Were saving the black for the "big dance" night - I think it adds that elegant touch that a 5pm wedding should have.

Anyway, back to the craft idea. I had picked up the strings of lights and the little paper lantern covers (Micheal's $1 bin), but have recently been rethinking this idea. I love that look, but I've seen it a lot, plus the little globes tear easily and they are hard to get adjusted so they hang right. So, being the crafty girl I am, I'm going to instead have these tissue paper pom poms hanging from the ceiling. I'm going to do green and white. I made one last night and it's really easy... and the bonus is that my fiance loved it.

You can find the how-to instructions here. They're Martha of course.

If I start to feel really crafty, I might try these crepe paper flowers. They're Martha too. You can find the how-to instructions here.